18 Sep 2023
As PMG Funds has dived into our own sustainability journey, we have been pleased to find many of our valued tenants are making significant headway in theirs.
Pact (formerly Alto Packaging) has been a long-standing tenant at 33 Vickery Street, Te Rapa, Hamilton, a property now owned by Pacific Property Fund (PPF). Pact’s vision is to lead the circular economy through innovative packaging, reuse and recycling solutions.
Circularity of plastics is certainly a topical point when it comes to the environment. Pact Group, including the Pact Hamilton plant, is focused on reducing its environmental impact by using recyclable plastics, reprocessing them into other products, and reusing as much as possible.
Recycle, reuse, remake
Pact’s Hamilton site, along with its 28 other sites around New Zealand, have been heavily involved in leading sustainability improvement efforts outside of manufacturing products. Health, Safety and Sustainability Coordinator for the site, Michelle Rae, has been working on a number of initiatives which she says are all about ‘recycling, reusing or remaking’.
Initiatives include:
• Recycling 465kg of cardboard each month
• Replacing cardboard bins at the end of production lines with permanent bins that save the company approximately $25,000 per year
• Recycling shrink wrap used to protect customer product through Pact Recycling (Astron)
• Recovering items that are no longer usable, such as broken pallets, which may be recycled and reused
• Sending 90% of its protective equipment (masks and hair nets) to Future Post and converting them into fence posts for farming, equestrian and vineyard use
• Replacing all single-use work, contractor and visitor overalls with washable and reusable versions
• Giving bulk containment solutions a second life through the collection of commercial waste
Taking strides to reach ambitious sustainability goals
The Pact Wellington Facility is New Zealand’s only polyethylene terephthalate (PET) wash plant and integrated manufacturing facility. The Coke bottles, meat trays and other clear PET materials collected from kerbside recycling bins are sorted at Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) across New Zealand and then sent to Pact’s Wellington facility, which reprocesses it back into food packaging for use across New Zealand.
Michelle says Pact is on track to meet the sustainability goals of Pact Group to eliminate all non-recyclable packaging that it produces and offers 30% recycled content across the packaging portfolio from its operations by 2025, and more broadly aiming to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030.
"While this is an ambitious target, we are well on track to achieve it," says Michelle.
Disclaimer: The information in this testimonial reflects the opinion of the specific tenant and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of PMG. It is of a general nature and was current as of September 2023. It is not intended to be regulated financial advice for the purpose of the Financial Markets Conduct Act 2013, and does not take your individual circumstances and financial situation into account. PMG does not provide financial advice. Please seek advice from a licensed financial advice provider before making any investment decisions.
